Crawl
by WolfPeaceMonster
Summary: She shouldn't be feeling like this. No, she really shouldn't. These feelings...they were strange, unlike anything she'd ever felt before. They scared her beyond belief. Every time their eyes met her heart would beat faster and faster. Every time they touched electric shocks would jump through her. No. She shouldn't feel like this. She can't. Because in the end, she would kill her.
1. Assassins, the Beginning

Ok so I know that originally I had this story up but after some backtracking, I realized exactly how rushed and messy it was. Granted it's still not the best but if you've seen the first, you'd agree that this is a lot cleaner.

Disclaimer: Of course I don't own Sailor Moon. If I did, it would be crappy.

* * *

_Childish cries intensified the pain in her head, darkening her vision._

_"Mommy! Daddy!" There they were again._

_Another voice sounded, but it was muffled, distant. "Run!"_

_She didn't listen. Instead she moved closer to the cries, blinking frantically in hopes of restoring her vision. Her boot slid mid-step and she braced herself with her hands, but something wet came away on her hands. Something wet and warm. A terrible screaming sound escaped her lips as she registered all the blood._

_There was a searing pain in her left arm, followed by a piercing screech that was not her own. A dark, blurry outline of a bull-like monster towered over her. Two fuzzy cold dead faces, one missing a considerably large chunk where the brain should have been._

_Visions flashed through her mind, a mixture of emotions swirled through her body and the sensations overwhelmed her. The teenager howled, clutching her head, as memories flooded her brain. She couldn't even begin to make sense of the blurry, jumbled images wreaking havoc on her mind._

"Mommy! Daddy!" A small, terrified voice cried out, the call echoing through her mind.

She flinched, bracing herself for more images. Her head buzzed and she could feel them surfacing again.

"Rei!" The furious shout cut through the visions like a knife would slice through flesh. The raven-haired girl shook her head to clear her senses, glancing around feverishly.

"Mommy. Daddy." It was a whimper now.

Rei looked down, discovering a pile of rubble at her feet. A small hand shook as it reached out desperately for help. Rei dropped to her knees, furiously tearing at the debris. The cries were getting softer as the sounds of labored breathing met her ears. The slowly dying voice heated her blood and turned her vision red at the edges.

She had to save the girl.

Grimacing, Rei lifted a particularly large chunk of wall away and saw a dirty lock of blonde hair. "Help… please." The plead was soft, so soft she almost didn't hear it. Rei grabbed the hand, trying not to hurt the girl further, and began to move and kick away enough debris to reach the body connected to it.

Finally she unearthed a face with streaks cut through the grime on it by tears. The girl tried to take a deep breath, but she only produced a wet croaking noise, her face distorting in pain. Something was crushing her lungs. Rei clawed at the rocks and broken building parts, bloodying her own hands in a desperate attempt to save her.

Terrified green eyes met hers for a brief moment, daring to fill with hope. At last Rei was able to clear out the rest of the rubble crushing the small girl and, with a strangled cry, the girl clung to her legs as tightly as she could. Rei didn't get a chance to respond to the fragile embrace before the girl's body was wracked by a spasm, falling to her knees. She retched blood, some spilling onto Rei's legs and boots. A choked whimper escaped her lips as she collapsed. Dead.

Rei stared, unable to even breathe the word "No" into the silence that had befallen her. She ignored the shaking ground, the shouts of men and the insistent hand gripping her arm. She stumbled backwards and fell over a piece of the fallen building, her already injured arm twisting at an awkward angle as she landed.

Her eyes widened as she gave a silent scream. Why was this different?

A hand jerked her roughly to her feet. The usually steady and graceful raven slipped and would've fallen again if not for the strong arms holding her steady.

"C'mon, we've got to get out of here." A heavy voice hissed.

Rei looked around. There. On the rooftop. She quickly rolled to one side, grunting at the pain in her arm, and crouched behind a boulder. She took a peek around the large rock and, upon seeing her enemy, launched a fire arrow at him. He fell back, clutching his burning chest, screaming all the way.

Her arm throbbed but she spared a quick glance at it-definitely useless now-before following her partner through the broken building, swinging her sword and slicing down enemy assassins. Her left arm was too weak for her to use her powers properly. Ahead of her, Phobos was locked in combat with a large, burly man. His oversized sword was at least two feet wide.

He lifted it above his head and chopped down with unbelievable speed. Phobos barely managed to dodge it, the steel glinting hungrily as it cut into the ground- just missing his face. Phobos' sword moved into a swift uppercut and sliced through the man's side, but he cried out in shock as his sword lodged itself in the man's chest. Then a large fist came up and he was decked hard in the face.

The ashy-haired man staggered backward, weaponless and cornered. Rei cut down the last assassin attacking her and leaped from rock to rock, a blur of movement. Something made the large man turn and an angry, surprised look came to his face at the sight of her charging at him. Wait, he _saw _her? But her sword was already cutting into his thick skin. Unfortunately, the man had anticipated her last minute thrust and she'd only managed to graze the stone hard skin of his chest.

The girl landed a few feet away and quickly spun on her heel, maneuvering herself expertly through the assassin's defenses and striking with her sword again. Like Phobos' sword it lodged in the man's chest and refused to come out, but this was exactly what the Martian wanted. Flames burst from the blade of her sword and the assassin roared in agony as he was slowly melted from the inside out. His skin peeled from his body, revealing the murky substance beneath that identified him as one of the Summoned. Rei snarled and yanked her sword out, using the momentum to swing the weapon in a deadly arc of flame and effectively incinerating what was left of the creature upon contact.

She stepped back as to not be caught in the aftermath of her own inferno as the Summoned creature imploded in on itself and collapsed in a pile of dust, Phobos' sword clattering to the ground in the process. Rei frowned slightly at the grey substance still clinging to her clothes and made a mental note to herself to clean them later. Then, aided by his voice, she remembered her friend.

"Ow, dammit. That hurt." Phobos moaned, gingerly touching his swelling face.

The younger girl chuckled, sheathing her sword before offering him her good arm. "Get up you big baby." He took it gratefully and wearily rose to his feet. Rei double-checked herself while Phobos retrieved his sword. No new injuries. Good.

Faint footfalls made her turn before shoving Phobos behind a hunk of fallen building and diving after him. "We've got to get out of here before they find us." She hissed. Phobos nodded solemnly and pointed to the entrance they had used to come through.

The footsteps weren't so faint anymore.

Rei shook her head quickly in her disagreement with her friend. She pointed up, signaling to him with her hands that they would escape on the rooftops. The ash-haired man arched an eyebrow in surprise.

*Won't that make it easier for them to catch us?* He signaled back.

*No. We came from the underground, they'll be waiting for us to make a move towards there. Besides, if we're careful, we'll see them but they won't see us.* She signaled back, flashing him an irritated look, which Phobos defiantly brushed off as he peeked over their hiding place.

He nodded briefly and they silently began climbing rocks, using their hooks to scour the wall and slip onto the roof. Carefully the two Martians scouted the roof, looking for any signs of enemies. Nothing. All clear. They checked out the surrounding areas and there were no signs of anything above ground.

They didn't notice the tall, white-haired man watching them from a distance on another rooftop. Standing next to him was a shorter man with long, unruly dirty blonde hair.

"Should we kill them now?" The shorter man asked.

The taller one shook his head. "No, I have a job for the girl."

Quickly, Rei and Phobos hopped onto the next rooftop and briefly checked their surroundings before jumping to the next, moving like shadows. They traveled that way for some time, heading back to their base.

* * *

So finally, I'm done, it's taken me forever to fix it up this much. Sad I know...but I owe most of this to Cloud Auditore Fair who set out on the horrible task of correcting my mistakes.

Reviews are nice, so is candy. And aspirin...


	2. Breakfast

So for any of you who originally read the first chapter, reviewed, favorited, followed, and whatnot...well...I've been a lazy ass and just now actually got up to do this. This chapter has been sitting on my desktop for about a month now after I got it back from Cloud and I haven't touched it. But for any of you who care, the third chapter is already basically halfway done.

* * *

The birds chirping loudly outside her window finally roused the golden-haired princess from her deep sleep. Cornflower eyes slowly fluttered open and one hand emerged from beneath the covers to shade them from the glaring sunlight streaming through the crack in her curtains.

Blonde hair pooled out against the white linen sheets and blue eyes stared listlessly up at the familiar ceiling. She found no comfort in staring at the ceiling, the blasted white surface of it painted with pictures depicting the tale of how the Silver Millennium came to be, how the first Serenity claimed the throne after so much bloodshed. She had to admit though, it was a beautiful piece of work and she took time each morning to appreciate it. If but for a few moments of laying in awed silence by its beauty.

Serenity was content to just lie there all day but she knew she had _lessons_ and important _business_ to attend to. She would have to meet with "important" nobles that would seek a chance to claim her hand and the grand title as king of the Silver Alliance. The blonde princess groaned as a knock sounded at her door.

"Come in already," she growled thickly, waving in the visitor despite the door preventing them from seeing her and vise versa. There was a click as the doorknob was turned and the white door was slowly pushed open. A familiar mop of jet black hair emerged from the other side of the door and friendly sea-green eyes met hers.

"I see you're in a happy mood today," Theseus teased as his typical sly smirk formed on his face and Serenity caught a glimpse of perfect white teeth. The boy didn't quite portray the aura that most Neptunian people were known for but likely closer to a Uranian image if not for his eyes and dark hair. It was common knowledge that Uranians usually had blonde or light brown hair and unless she was going bonkers, Serenity was _sure _Theseus had dark ocean blue hair.

His hair was unkempt and unruly as it usually was and hung down in his face, obscuring his vision every so often. The princess reached out and, with an annoyed flick of her hand, swatted the pesky dark locks away. "You need to get your hair brushed." She commented flatly.

Theseus gave her a lopsided grin. "I believe you could too, _Princess._"

Serenity clenched her fists and sat up. "Hmph," she crossed her arms indignantly, "I just woke up, what's your excuse?"

The boy chuckled and retreated back into the doorway. "My excuse?" He asked as he did. "Why, my excuse is because I woke up late and had no time to comb it for fear of not being able to wake my dear princess up sooner!"

Experience told him to close the door so when she threw the new violet colored glass vase at him, it shattered against the door to the sounds of his fading laughter. _Damn. _It had just been replaced too.

Serenity groaned and slid from beneath the sheets of her ever so comfortable bed. "The Queen sent me to tell you that you're expected at breakfast in half an hour!" Theseus piped in from the other side of the door. Apparently he hadn't left, the annoying bastard.

"What?!" Serenity dashed over to her vanity and fumbled in the drawers for her watch, taking enough time to spare a resentful glare at the broken remains of her alarm clock. The time read seven-thirty on the dot. "Theseus!"

She could hear the sound of his footsteps getting farther away and the faint echoes of his laughter. The blonde groaned again as her shoulders sagged in defeat, already preparing herself for the long-winded lecture she was bound to receive for her tardiness. Serenity slumped against the wall of her chamber. It was painted a soft pink color with swirls of slightly darker pink hues dusting its surface.

As suddenly as her sullen mood came, it lifted and the princess shook her head, mentally chastising herself for wasting precious time sulking and skipping over to her large walk-in closet. She hoped she could find something suitable for her mother's tastes that was easy to throw on and quick to accent with accessories. Luckily for her, she was able to find an old, pink sundress she hadn't worn since two summers ago when she'd gone to Venus. It came down to just above her knees with a thick silk ribbon of a darker pink color around the waist and a bow of the same material and color fastened to the back of her right hip.

Serenity slid the dress over her head and slipped a small white sweater on too, making sure not too much of her bare shoulders were exposed. It was inappropriate to show so much skin at a formal meal with the Queen. Or so her mother claimed. She'd seen Setsuna wearing far less while eating dinner with her mother before. Not that she'd been spying of course.

She quickly ran a brush through the tangled golden mess that was her hair and hastened to pin it up in her usual odango style, a style she had taken from her mother. A glance at her watch told her it was seven forty-seven. Serenity grabbed her makeup and sped through the process she usually went through each morning. Her servants would do her actual makeup for the day after breakfast. Besides, she didn't have the time for them at the moment.

Seven fifty-two. She had eight minutes to get to the Queen's formal dining room where she assumed her mother was waiting for her. Perhaps her mother was having a large breakfast and it was being served in the Grand Dining Hall but that was unlikely since the poor girl had just learned of the meal invitation. No. If there was to be a big breakfast, she would have been informed and awoken much earlier by bustling servants and she would've noticed the extra number of guests. Breakfast had to be in her mother's dining hall. If not . . .Serenity cursed softly as she stumbled and nearly fell flat on her butt in the middle of the hallway. The girl slowed her pace slightly but still continued running.

Serenity could see the doors to her mother's dining room just up ahead. Praying that she was on time, the princess paused at the door, leaning against it to catch her breath and wipe away the thin layer of sweat that had formed from sprinting down the halls. She stepped into her shoes that she had long ago realized were terrible for running in and hesitantly began to open the door.

Queen Serenity XVII glanced up from her place at the head of the table as her only daughter pushed open the grand oak doors. She quietly mused to herself how fine they looked with the gold trim that had just been installed around them. Yes. Fine indeed.

The young girl was panting and seemed to be running out of air. The queen couldn't help but giggle at her daughter's apparently rushed breakfast attire. Her odangos were slightly crooked and her makeup was half done. Not to mention her shoes not being all the way on and her dress a bit rumpled.

Serenity met her eyes and a look of confusion swept across cornflower orbs. "What? Where is everyone?" The girl asked, much to her mother's amusement.

The Queen forced down the laughter that was dying to escape from her. "What do you mean?" Her daughter frowned and stumbled over to her usual place at the dining table. As she sat down, she seemed to finally notice that the table was bare save for two vanilla candles.

"Where are all the people and most importantly, Mother, where's breakfast?" The younger Serenity's face was decorated with adorable confusion and slight disappointment.

Serenity stood gracefully from her seat and motioned to her daughter, "Come silly, we're not eating here this morning, and certainly not with anyone else."

The princess' jaw dropped, "You mean I rushed for nothing?" It was nearly a scream.

"No, I'm glad you were on time, had you been late we might have missed it." The elder Serenity grinned and rose from her seat at the table, holding a hand out to her daughter and trying her best not to laugh and give away the surprise.

"Mom," Serenity Jr. whined, "Where are you taking me?"

"You'll see, you'll see dear." Queen Serenity chuckled and continued to practically drag the younger by the arm through her chambers.

"Seriously, where are you—" Serenity stopped midsentence and her jaw dropped. For the second time that morning. Or was it third? The Queen could definitely remember it dropping at least once.

"Well mother," Serenity Jr. finally spoke, "it seems you've outdone yourself this time."

* * *

"Sir, the package has been dropped."

"Good, send word to me when it is received."

"Yes, my lord."

* * *

So, please review if you care. Please be helpful too! I'm still not quite sure how I want to go with this story and reviews are nice!


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